Sunday, January 11, 2009
Da Bears
I’ve decided to add a new race to my schedule for 2009, the Soldier Field 10 in Chicago over Memorial Day weekend.
Winter Running Blues
The one downside about signing up for a March marathon is that a majority training takes place in wintertime. In years past, winter running was a piece of cake. I’d run in snow, sub-freezing temperatures, and I would do it most of the time in nothing more than a pair of shorts and long sleeved t-shirt. I still remember running in the Jingle All the Way 10k years ago in nothing more than shorts and a short sleeved t-shirt, despite the fact that it was snowing and 29.
These days, however, I find it more difficult to get outside when it’s cold and dark, damp and dank, and just downright depressing. I don’t know if it’s old age or the long layoff from running during the recovery from injury, but now I’m wearing long pants instead of shorts, three layers of shirts instead of one, and I’m even running inside a couple of days a week. Everyone from friends and family, to running buddies and pt’s, have even suggested, gasp, running on a treadmill. The treadmill, in this man’s opinion, is an evil piece of exercise equipment. It reduces you to nothing more than a gerbil, just running in place second after second, minute after minute, mile after mile. I can think of nothing more boring.
So I’m in a bind. I’m having a tough time running outside 6 days a week, I despise the treadmill, yet I have lots of training still to go before the big race in March. The solution --- an indoor track. Unfortunately, there are very few in this area, most are on college campuses or that far away land of Virginia. There is a little know gem, though, at Bally’s gym on Rockville Pike. The have an indoor track, 1/10th of a mile in distance, that should do the trick. I joined about a month ago and run there about once or twice a week. It’s a pain for sure; having to turn so often puts pressure on my hips, yet this slight discomfort is far preferable to the boredom of the treadmill.
The weather forecasters are predicting an arctic blast to move through the DC area on Thursday and Friday of this week. Originally, I was scheduled to do a 15 mile run on Saturday, but I’m going to Florida to visit my 86 year old grandfather and won’t have time to do such a long run between playing golf and eating early bird dinners at his Del Boca Vista retirement compound (think Seinfeld). I’m going to get creative and instead do my long run inside on Friday night --- 5 miles on the track followed by 5 on the treadmill, and then the last 5 on the track again. Is this ideal? Nope, not by a long shot, but it allows me to get the miles which should payoff down the road in March.
These days, however, I find it more difficult to get outside when it’s cold and dark, damp and dank, and just downright depressing. I don’t know if it’s old age or the long layoff from running during the recovery from injury, but now I’m wearing long pants instead of shorts, three layers of shirts instead of one, and I’m even running inside a couple of days a week. Everyone from friends and family, to running buddies and pt’s, have even suggested, gasp, running on a treadmill. The treadmill, in this man’s opinion, is an evil piece of exercise equipment. It reduces you to nothing more than a gerbil, just running in place second after second, minute after minute, mile after mile. I can think of nothing more boring.
So I’m in a bind. I’m having a tough time running outside 6 days a week, I despise the treadmill, yet I have lots of training still to go before the big race in March. The solution --- an indoor track. Unfortunately, there are very few in this area, most are on college campuses or that far away land of Virginia. There is a little know gem, though, at Bally’s gym on Rockville Pike. The have an indoor track, 1/10th of a mile in distance, that should do the trick. I joined about a month ago and run there about once or twice a week. It’s a pain for sure; having to turn so often puts pressure on my hips, yet this slight discomfort is far preferable to the boredom of the treadmill.
The weather forecasters are predicting an arctic blast to move through the DC area on Thursday and Friday of this week. Originally, I was scheduled to do a 15 mile run on Saturday, but I’m going to Florida to visit my 86 year old grandfather and won’t have time to do such a long run between playing golf and eating early bird dinners at his Del Boca Vista retirement compound (think Seinfeld). I’m going to get creative and instead do my long run inside on Friday night --- 5 miles on the track followed by 5 on the treadmill, and then the last 5 on the track again. Is this ideal? Nope, not by a long shot, but it allows me to get the miles which should payoff down the road in March.
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